DNA samples gathering dust: DA says the police must wor dailymaverick.co.za - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from dailymaverick.co.za Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Family may soon have the DNA answers they need
By Thobeka Ngema
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DURBAN - WHEN a womanâs burnt body was found in a ditch in Woody Glen, Hammarsdale, west of Durban six months ago a family believed it was that of Nomvuselelo Ngcobo, 31, who went missing on October 17.
The body was found on October 20 last year and DNA samples were taken for analysis. The family were not allowed to bury the body without DNA confirmation.
The missing womanâs sister, Nkosingiphile, said when she reported her sister missing, she learnt that the woman who was found dead had a pair of spectacles near her, and she was found a few houses from where Nomvuselelo lived with their mother, Zanele.
Cops making great strides in coming to grips with DNA backlog
By Sisonke Mlamla
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Cape Town - The police management have confirmed that they have made “great strides” to overcome the backlog in DNA testing while the system to track and trace forensic exhibits was now fully up and running.
Police spokesperson Vish Naidoo said that followed a reported disappearance of millions of forensic exhibits at the National Forensic DNA Database due to the Property Control and Exhibit Management (PCEM) system being shut down by the service provider in June 2020.
Naidoo said in fact those exhibits were stored in the Forensic Service Laboratory Administration System and could only be accessed manually.
Police say DNA backlog at forensic laboratories is being dealt with 26 April 2021 - 11:31 Image: 123RF/Felipe Caparros Cruz
The SA Police Service management has reassured the nation that while the backlog in the forensic laboratories is being handled with the urgency it deserves, priority is given to DNA samples required for court cases, especially those related to gender-based violence (GBV) cases, and DNA samples needed for the identification of people for burials.
Last month parliament’s police portfolio committee was told the DNA testing backlog increased from 117,000 in December to close to 173,000 in the first week of March.
There were also reports about the disappearance of millions of forensic exhibits at the national forensic DNA database due to the property control and exhibit management (PCEM) system being shut down by the service provider in June 2020.